BE

I rarely spend my time reviewing much of anything. I just feel like I have better things I could be doing. This album, however, after all of the negative responses I have seen, deserves some clarification. To preface the review, I must say that before giving the album a final judgement, hop on Google and look up a few interviews with Daniel Gildenlow about this album, and you may be surprised at some of the band's motives behind its creation. Its a LOT more personal and philosophical than its previously been given credit for.

Now, on to the review.

In terms of being a concept album, its fantastic. I'm never a big one to buy into the concepts themselves, regardless of the band, be it Dream Theater, Pain of Salvation, Pink Floyd, whatever. Honestly, I listen to concept albums because I know that they require a more extensive knowledge of musical devices such as motifs and allusions, etc. I am a music education major in college, so naturally I get a lot of exposure to things of that nature, so I look for it in the music I listen to as well. The motifs throughout this album are used magnificently, and really contribute to the album. For example, I love how the album draws to a close using the same theme as in Imago. It really ties the story together and serves as a nice ending to the album. The idea of God as a completely misunderstood and overlooked entity also brings about many philosophical questions. It causes one to reflect on his or her views on religion and its development. I recall, upon the first few listens, pondering the idea that God may truly have intentionally contributed to every religious ideal in the world, despite the background. Of course the thought was deeper than that, but this isn't the time or the place. My point is that the album makes you think, and since it is a concept album, I think that it deserves respect and praise.

Reviewing the music is difficult. I really don't know if the more effective mechanism would be to review song-by-song, or collectively. Ultimately, the music is ingenious. No, it isn't progressive metal. No, it isn't One Hour by the Concrete Lake. No, it isn't TPE or Remedy Lane or Entropia. Its BE, and that's all it needs to be. It is a completely different beast from any previous PoS release. Its heavy at times, bluesy at times, emotional at times, soft and melodic at times, celtic-sounding at times, even hilarious a couple of times. The band has really shown its talent and ability to create TRULY diverse and original music. Just a side note - a good friend of mine from college is Swedish and went to college with Frederik, the keyboardist. She was actually very good friends with him, and she told me that he was always into a very diverse range of musical styles, and she said that up until about 3 months before he moved to begin touring with PoS, he hardly listened to rock music at all, and that his major was in classical piano performance, so you can see that one of the primary composers in the band definitely draws his influences from places other than prog-metal bands of late. Anyway, I absolutely LOVE Dea Pecuniae. It feels SO good to listen to. I don't know how else to explain it. Its so slow, but driving that you feel each beat lead into the next, and you want it to last forever. Daniel's vocals are phenomenal on this track, and one particular moment around 5:50 just makes my stomach wrench because of the raw, sheer emotion that he expresses. Imago is another favorite of mine, combining elements of Celtic-Folk and middle-eastern theory, such as harmonic minor scales and modes and 3/4 time signatures subdivided to create a very sweeping, dancelike feel. Great melody as well. The rest of the album is too... fitting to describe. Its a mountain of rock and metal, then its a valley of reserved, contemplative instrumentals. Daniel's voice carries the album through all of its twists and turns flawlessly. You can definitely tell when PoS WANTED a song to stand out. Everything else just kind of seeps in the ears and pulls you everywhere that you are supposed to go emotionally. This album is an absolute masterpiece. Just buy it, listen, and "then you will understand everything".

Social review comments

Review related links

• Send comments to
• Report this review (#71151)
• Buy PAIN OF SALVATION music online with PA partners
• Show all PAIN OF SALVATION MP3/Stream
• Go to PAIN OF SALVATION page for videos, full discography with ratings, reviews and much more
• Go to Be page for more details, where to buy and ratings/reviews
• Search the Forum for PAIN OF SALVATION related discussions